The present invention relates to an electro-surgical excisor, and more particularly, to an electro-surgical excisor used for excising a tissue specimen from the transformation zone of the uterine cervix.
Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia has been on the increase in recent years, but successful ablation treatment has been provided by procedures such as electrocoagulation, electrodiathermy, cryosurgery, and laser surgery. With such procedures, it is important for the physician to recognize and biopsy invasive cancers to avoid their unintentional ablation.
Recently, biopsy specimens of this type of lesion has been successfully obtained by use of wire loop electrodes. Such electrodes allow the lesions and the transformation zone to be removed in their entirety and made available for a pathological analysis.
In using a loop electrode on the end of a handle, there is typically no guiding support during the excision. As a result, there is a risk of injury to the surrounding tissue which would result in a longer recovery period for the patient. Further, the amount of tissue obtained may vary in amount and definition, leading to difficulties in the pathological analysis.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel electro-surgical excisor which permits the complete severance of a controlled tissue specimen in a single revolution of the excisor.
It is also an object to provide such an electro-surgical excisor which minimizes the potential for injury to adjacent healthy tissue.
It is a further object to provide such an electro-surgical excisor which obtains a more defined and controlled amount of cervical tissue, making excision of the lesion and pathological interpretation easier.